I loved prior books by this author, but I had to abandon this one at 40%. Trite, heavy handed, dense. Overall really not enjoyable to me.

I have heard nothing but great things about the work of Elif Shafak, so when I saw her 2024 release up on NetGalley I requested it on impulse and wow am I glad that I did because this was phenomenal.

This is historical fiction at its best. Shafak weaves together the stories of a poverty stricken child with an incredible memory in London 1840 with a young Yazidi girl facing the rise of ISIS in 2014 Turkey with a recently divorced hydrologist in 2018 London. What connects these three seemingly disparate stories is the ancient city of Nineveh, the Epic of Gilgamesh, and a single drop of water.

The first ~15% was a bit of a struggle trying to understand how these narratives weave together but the prose was enthralling so I kept going and as it all began to come together I couldn't help but marvel at the skill of this storytelling. Shafak is able to make a fairly long and heart wrenching story not get bogged down by the length and sadness.

This is a book that will sit with me for some time and is a serious contender for one of my favorite books of the year. I will absolutely be checking out Shafak's backlist and any future publications.

I think I may have found my favorite read of 2024 so far. Books can be enjoyed like food, some you devour quickly, some you decide to stop eating, some you enjoy so much that you slow down and savor it. There Are Rivers in the Sky is one that starts off almost as a slow burn, but once I got to the meat of it, I didn't want it to end. There is so much in it to take in and taste and understand.

This book has 3 storylines, maybe sorta 4, that you know must be going to interconnect eventually. And if you've read Shafak's writing before, you know that there's a good chance that it'll be heartbreaking. And it is. It was so worth the heavy heart, though. The journey and passion and loss of passion and obstacles to overcome in each character's piece of the timeline is heavy, and laced with so much of reality, even as a fiction book.

I love the concept of a drop of water becoming all parts of the water cycle, and how this drop of water traveled miles and miles and iterations, to connect a set of people who otherwise, might not have ever be connected. Water is one of the most important pieces of life, and this story was an homage to the beauty of that.

In conclusion: Loved it.

Thank you to Netgalley and Knopf Publishing for the e-ARC and ARC!

I think this is written well, it just wasn’t for me. I just don’t have the attention span needed to fully follow this story, I had to work too hard for it.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers!
It starts and ends with a drop of rain…and oh, the tale that is told between that start and end is everything. It’s magical, yet gritty and realistic. At times it was almost too smart for me, but also relatable. It’s definitely multi cultural, but something every single human being will understand on a core level.
What a compelling read!

I really enjoyed this book. I thought the premise was very intriguing. I enjoyed that it covered multiple timelines and I thought everything came together nicely at the end.

I got months behind on my ARCs but I finally got the motivation to plow through them and review. This one was by far my favorite of the batch.

This is an ambitious, sweeping, gorgeous novel that delivers on every level. It tells the story of three people through different time periods, all connected by rivers. King Arthur of the Sewers and Slums, or Arthur colloquially, lives in Victorian England by the River Thames and is born in sewage by the river to a mother who doesn't want him, possessing of a perfect memory.

He rises above his station to become an apprentice to a printer, then becomes obsessed with Mesopotamian archaeology at the British Museum. The only one who can read cuneiform with his particular talents, he soon translates the Epic of Gilgamesh and travels back to the River Tigris and Nineveh, where he becomes enchanted with the much maligned Yazidi people and falls in love with a seer he can never have named Leila. He becomes intertwined with the lore of her family.

Her descendent is Narin, an orphan with a loving grandmother who becomes embroiled in the ethnic conflicts of an ISIS-controlled Iraq. Who listens to all the stories her grandmother tells with rapt attention and is destined to go deaf.

Which brings us to modern-day London and Zahleekah, weighed down by grief ever since her parents were killed by a flood on a trip to Turkey. Zahleekah, a hydrologist who's afraid of water, rents a houseboat and intends to kill herself.

Their fates soon become enmeshed, just like the flowing currents of rivers the world over, with the stories of the people who loved the river, ancient people oppressed by genocide and poverty, whose stories were rewritten by colonizers and still remembered by the river.

The story also touches on the ravages of climate change, but in a deft, sophisticated way rather than a heavy-handed way.

For anyone who loves archaeology, rivers and storytelling, this book is like a love letter to all three topics told through the eyes of three people with a deep loneliness inside them that sets them apart from society, their own families, even if they themselves are the keepers of the stories of time.

A beautiful, haunting, heartbreaking epic, with a devastatingly hopeful conclusion.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance review copy. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

The first and best thing I can think to say is WOW. I had never read anything by Elif Shafak before, but I was drawn to this one by the intriguing title and premise. I love books that span multiple timelines and all eventually connect. I was not prepared for such a sweeping epic and beautiful story. The ancient city of Ninevah and the Epic of Gilgamesh were expertly woven into all the narratives, giving the stories a commonality that meant none of them could survive or make sense without the others. Yet, they were all different enough to have their own individual plots and characters to draw the reader in. I would think it is hard to write a novel in which the narrative jumps back and forth between centuries, but this one handled it so seamlessly, it never felt disjointed. I truly loved this book and look forward to reading more by Shafak.

Absolutely beautiful book. The writing is exquisite. I read it on kindle and highlighted more passages than I have in any other book. So relevant. All three timelines were so engaging, emotional, and beautifully done.

"Mesopotamian lore understands that water is the defining force of life. Trees are 'rooted water', streams are 'flowing water', mountains are 'rising water' and, as for humans, they are, and will always be, 'warring water', never at peace. Water has memory. Rivers are especially good at remembering."

"For us, memory is all we have. If you want to know who you are, you need to learn the stories of your ancestors."

A beautifully written tale of epic history, Victorian bildungsroman, and modern atrocity; all witnessed by a single raindrop that connects and flattens times. This novel more or less covers the history of the Epic of Gilgamesh, and illuminates a corner of history that is oft-forgotten in Western history, the early prowess and culture of Nineveh. We briefly see into the ancient past before hurtling into the 19th century to follow a young prodigy who will go on to discover much of Epic of Gilgamesh while also struggling to live in the culture he was born into. We then jump forward to modern London and Turkey and follow a woman and a child, each in a time of upheaval. One experiences a smaller and personal shift in her life while the other struggles under the rising power of ISIL. As the pages turn we delve deeper into each story, and how these 4 stories overlap amongst our antagonists. The history is fascinating, and much of the modern story of Narine is truly devastating but it all comes together in Shafak's skilled hands.

The most beautifully poetic book you will read this year! I was captivated with the journey of water and how Narin, Arthur and Zaleekah are all connected to each other. The ending gave us a full circle moment and the return or coming to the River Tigris, I felt the loss of the Yazidi people, their language and stories and seer abilities just gone due to genocide and hatred.

This was a tough read at times and I almost gave up because I knew some of the information given was probably due to research and people’s actual experiences and for that alone, the time it must have taken to listen to people’s stories and put a little bit of them in the book, I just knew I had to respect the text and finish it. I’m so glad I did!

Thank you to Elif Shafak for being an absolute queen and putting in all the hard work to honor Mesopotamia and the history that archeologists work so hard to preserve. I learned so much and yet still have so much research of my own to do, I just feel it is my new responsibility. Even through my tears when reading this, I felt so close to the form of water and I will be trying to preserve as much of it as I can. Please give this one a read, you won’t regret it.

Engaging and meticulous attention to detail. It takes skill to craft such an engaging story so full of historical knowledge and accuracy. Arthur’s was the only story that captured me the whole time, however, and the connections were often repetitive with little trust in the reader.

Whenever I think about this book, I find myself having trouble articulating what this book is about. It’s about people, about history in Mesopotamia, about relationships, about the Yazidi people, about the visible and invisible connections between people, about love in its many forms -even ones that harm-, about surviving despite your circumstances and the deep scars that they cause, about prejudices and brutality, about the Epic of Gilgamesh, and it’s about a single drop of water.

Elif Shafak is great at teaching me bits of Turkish history I hadn’t heard much about. The more brutal and ugly parts of it. But she does so beautifully. My heart broke again and again reading this book, for the characters, for the story, for the people in history who actually lived it. It’s also sadly a very apt time for a book involving a genocide, one that is not widely known.

If you’re not familiar with Elif Shafak’s writing, you’re truly missing out. Her writing is always so beautiful and somehow very educational, it borders magical realism at times. She writes about strong characters and weaves a story like a tapestry, once finished, forcing you to take a step back to take in the full picture.

This is no different, a story spanning centuries, cultures and countries. There are three main characters across time. Only by reading will you see if and how they’re connected.

This is not a book you will read in one sitting. You’ll take your time with it, and it’ll steep within you, until you’re ready to dive back in.

I read this as a mixture of audiobook and ebook, and really enjoyed the narration as well.

Thank you to Knopf and NetGalley for the ARC!

THERE ARE RIVERS IN THE SKY by Elif Shafak is a beautiful, complex story that unfolds across generations. We have King Ashurbanipal in "olden times" Nineveh; King Arthur of the Sewers and Slums near the River Thames in the 1800s; Narin near the River Tigris in 2014; and Zaleekah by the River Thames in 2018.

Each character and storyline is richly developed, and there is satisfaction in uncovering the shared threads. This is truly a work of art, bound to be among my favorite reads of 2024.

As the title hints at, Shafak highlights how water is a life force: it can be a gift, a threat, a danger, a savior. These disparate realities are explored in these pages. While the book speaks of the dangers that can be posed, it also reminds us that hope isn't lost. Stories aren't lost.

The choice to have a singular water drop witnessing these various lives across time and holding in itself a memory of those events offers a fantastical element that adds richness to these pages and the story's themes.

(Thank you to Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.)

Remember the plague flea chapter in Hamnet? Elif Shafak’s opening water droplet in There Are Rivers in the Sky reminded me of Maggie O’Farrel’s tour de force in the best way.

The gorgeously written Rivers spans millennia and continents, connecting the stories of an ancient king, a street-born Victorian researcher, a Yazidi child and a divorced hydrologist through a literal drop of water. They are also similarly connected by an unusual blue tablet containing part of the Epic of Gilgamesh.

Others have attempted to convey the plot, but I’d rather just say this is a book well worth the journey it takes the reader on. Though the water droplet is anthropomorphized, a bit, and the story reads something like a fairytale, Rivers is very much grounded in a reality that is often ugly, dark, and sad.

CW: Those sensitive to sexual violence, suicidal ideation, the violent prejudice against a religious minority, and homophobia should proceed with caution.

Thanks to NetGalley and Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

My response to this novel is complex. It is a cross-genre story that is historical fiction with a fantasy feel, following three main characters across lives intertwined by water - water from the Thames and the Tigris, as well as droplets that travel across the world geographically and historically, characters who are connected by shared relationships, in the present and the past.

Arthur Smythe - whose full name is King Arthur of the Sewers and Slums - is a poor boy, born to a trash-picker in 1840, a self-made man who pulls himself out of poverty as much by chance as by ability. Narin, 9 years old in 2014 when her portion of the story begins, is a Yazidi, a member of an ancient Middle Eastern religion that is vilified by those around them, targeted by ISIS. Zaleekhah is nearly 30 in 2018 when her portion begins, an orphan raised by her uncle and aunt after her parents' death when she was 7, a scientist who studies hydrology. Despite their differences, in time and space, their lives are intertwined in ways that defy history.

As fantasy, this novel occurs across three time periods, with a brief interlude to a fourth, the era in which the Epic of Gilgamesh was first written. The three stories are interwoven, with the relationships between the characters coming clear over the course of the novel.

As historical fiction, this novel is based on events in the recent and more distant past. Arthur raises himself from poverty first as a printer's apprentice, and then as an archeologist working at the British Museum, a self-taught specialist in cuneiform who travels to Ninevah, looking for the missing pieces of the Epic of Gilgamesh. His life closely mirrors that of George Smith, a real historical figure whose life was much the same. Narin is a refugee from ISIS, whose life closely mirrors that of many refugees in the Middle East, with all the horror than entails. Zaleekhah is a scientist going through a divorce and a period of self-discovery. Each of these characters are realistic, and could easily exist - in the past for Arthur, and today for Narin and Zaleekhah. They are relatable and captivating, and sometimes heartbreaking.

The first chapter - the time period of Ashurbanipal - reads more like fantasy than the rest of the volume, and was a bit difficult to get through, at least for me; however, it is more of a prologue, and worth getting through to access the rest of the book. The lives of the three main characters will touch you, and the rest of the book pulled me in to the point that I had difficulty putting it down. Because this novel deals with difficult subjects, it is recommended for older teens and adults.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Shafak's writing is always beautiful and I was completely invested in the story. The Island of Missing Trees remains my favorite by her, though--this one felt overly long and the ending fell just a bit short for me. Still 4 stars and a fantastic read!

"Set upon two rivers-the Tigris and the Thames- and spinning centuries, There Are Rivers in the Sky is a love story, wrapped in a family drama, wrapped in a respinning of Dickensian London"

It starts with a raindrop in Mesopotamia.

We tumble with this raindrop through time, resurfacing along the banks of the Thames, then in modern day Turkey, then back in London of the present day

This was an interesting reading experience for me. There were long stretches where I didn't read a single page then I would read for hours and be amazed at the beauty of the writing.

There Are Rivers in The Sky is an ambitious novel. I am sure there is a tremendous amount of research that went into it. For a fiction story it may feel like there is a good bit of information dump here: The ancient Assyrian empire, the Epic of Gilgamesh, 1840's London, the sad history and plight of Yazidis and the inhumanity of ISIS, beautiful city of Hasankefy which was engulfed by the rising Tigris River, behind a controversial dam.

But this is Elif Shafak. She weaves the story so expertly with a poetic rhythm and by the time the puzzle pieces fit into place, and the fates of the characters -Arthur Smyth, a poor boy born into London’s worst slums in the 1840's; Narin, a young Yazidi girl who is slowly going deaf in Turkey in 2014; and Dr. Zaleekhah Clarke is a hydrologist in London in 2018- collide, the final twist is brilliantly deliberate and moving.

There are some passages on the memory of water throughout the novel and Zaleekhah's chapters have an extra dose of melancholy that I didn't care for but overall I really enjoyed this literary fiction with heavy historical fiction elements.

My advice is please be patient with this book, it delivers.

Elif Shafak’s There Are Rivers in the Sky is a lyrical and thought-provoking exploration of identity, migration, and human connection. The novel beautifully captures the tension between tradition and progress, and between staying rooted and seeking freedom. What a pleasure to read, especially as a first-generation, child of immigrants myself. Thank you Elif Shafak, Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor, and NetGalley for the ARC!

I read Shafak's Island of Missing Trees and was blown away by her beautiful storytelling. I immediately had to check out her newest novel and it's also beautifully written, poignant and thought provoking. A gorgeously written work that was absolutely captivating.